Editing Compactor

{{Short description|Machine}}
{{refimprove|date=February 2018}}
[[Image:Caterpillar 825G Soil Compactor.jpg|thumb|Soil compactor]]
A '''compactor''' is a [[machine]] or mechanism used to reduce the size of material such as [[Waste compaction|waste material]] or bio mass through [[Soil compaction|compaction]]. A '''trash compactor''' is used in business and public places like hospitals (and in the United States also in homes) to reduce the volume of trash they produce. A baler-wrapper compactor is used for making compact and wrapped bales in order to improve logistics.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Sales and Support|date=2018-12-26|title=What is a Compactor and How it is Used in Construction|url=https://kor-pak.com/compactor-used-construction/|access-date=2021-02-04|website=kor-pak.com|language=en-US}}</ref>

Normally powered by [[hydraulic machinery|hydraulics]], compactors take many shapes and sizes. In [[landfill]] sites for example, a large [[tractor]] (typically a converted [[Loader (equipment)|front end loader]] with some variant of a [[Bulldozer|bulldozer blade]] attached) with spiked steel wheels called a [[waste compaction|landfill compactor]] is used to drive over waste deposited by [[waste collection vehicle]]s (WCVs).

WCVs themselves incorporate a compacting mechanism which is used to increase the [[Cargo|payload]] of the vehicle and reduce the number of times it has to empty. This usually takes the form of hydraulically powered sliding plates which sweep out the collection [[Chute (gravity)|hopper]] and compress the material into what has already been loaded.

Different compactors are used in [[scrap metal]] processing, the most familiar being the [[car crusher]]. Such devices can be of either the "pancake" type, where a scrap [[automobile]] is flattened by a huge descending hydraulically powered plate, or the [[Baler#Industrial packaging|baling]] press, where the automobile is compressed from several directions until it resembles a large cube

==Commercial use==
[[Image:Landfill compactor.jpg|thumb|Landfill compactor]]
Many retail and service businesses, such as fast food, restaurants, and hotels, use compactors to reduce the volume of non-recyclable waste as well as curb nuisance such as rodents and smell. In the hospitality industry tolerance for such nuisances is particularly low. These compactors typically come in electric and hydraulic operation, with quite a few loading configurations. Most popular loading configurations fall under the following:

* Ground-access; 
* Walk-on; 
* Secured indoor chute.

These compactors are almost exclusively of welded steel construction for two reasons: durability under pressure and exposure to the elements, as compactors are installed either completely outdoors or sometimes under a covered loading dock.

== Agricultural use ==
[[File:Orkel Dens-X Compactor.jpg|alt=Agricultural baler-wrapper compactor|thumb|Agricultural baler-wrapper compactor]]
As a means to preserve and store forage, baler-wrapper compactors are used to exclude oxygen from the forage and wrap it in air tight film. Without access to air the forage is preserved fresh for longer periods of time.

==Residential use==
[[File:2.28.12SolarCompactorByLuigiNovi1.jpg|thumb|150px|A solar trash compactor on a residential corner in [[Jersey City, New Jersey]].]]
[[File:Trash Compactor at Honeyman State Park.jpg|thumb|250px|Example of a larger mechanical compactor]]
In the United States, there are also trash compactors, hydraulic or manual, designed for residential use. Likewise, they reduce the volume of [[Waste|garbage]]. For example, some compactors reduce the volume of [[polystyrene]] to 1/30.{{citation needed|date=February 2012}}

==Municipal use==
In the United States, in addition to the waste vehicle and landfill use, there are [[solar-powered trash compactor]]s that can hold the equivalent of 200 gallons of trash before they need to be emptied.<ref>[https://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=12045048 Solar Compactors Make Mincemeat of Trash], [[All Things Considered]], [[NPR]], July 17, 2007</ref>

The large compactors in [[garbage trucks]] can be dangerous for workers, and played a role in the [[Civil rights movement|US Civil Rights Movement]]. The 1968 [[Memphis sanitation strike]] took place when two [[waste collector|sanitation worker]]s were crushed to death in garbage compactors, after which 700 of their 1300 black coworkers decided to strike.<ref>{{citation |url=https://kinginstitute.stanford.edu/encyclopedia/memphis-sanitation-workers-strike |title=Memphis Sanitation Workers Strike |encyclopedia=King Encyclopedia |date=2 June 2017 |publisher=Stanford University |url-status=live |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20191128204325/https://kinginstitute.stanford.edu/encyclopedia/memphis-sanitation-workers-strike|archivedate=November 28, 2019 |df=mdy-all }}</ref>

== Recycling and energy ==
Baler-wrapper compactors are used for efficient storage and transport of materials like RDF ([[refuse-derived fuel]]) and bin waste, as well as compost and saw dust, enabling higher rates of recycling.

==Construction industry==
In [[construction]], there are three main types of compactor: the plate, the rammer, and the [[road roller]]. The roller type compactors are used for compacting [[crusher|crushed]] rock as the base layer underneath concrete or stone foundations or slabs. The plate compactor, vibrating plate, or tamper, has a large [[vibrator (mechanical)|vibrating]] baseplate and is suited for creating a level grade, while the rammer compactor has a smaller foot. The rammer, or trench rammer, is mainly used to compact the backfill in narrow [[trench]]es for water or gas supply pipes etc. Road rollers may also have vibrating rollers.

In plates and rollers, the vibration is provided by rapidly rotating eccentric masses. In smaller plates, the vibration causes a tendency to move forwards, while some larger plates are provided with a directional control. In the rammer the foot is mounted on a sleeve that slides vertically in the leg. Inside the sleeve, a piston is driven up and down by the engine through a reduction gear, crank and connecting rod. Substantial coil springs above and below the piston connect it to the sliding sleeve. The connection between the sleeve and foot is at a small angle so that the whole rammer leans away from the operator. The vibrating motion is therefore slightly off the vertical, and this gives the rammer a tendency to 'walk' forwards. The sliding joint in the leg is protected by a flexible bellows.          

In England the name "wacker plate" or just "wacker" is commonly used to refer to plate compactors, derived from the name of [[Wacker Neuson]], a well-known manufacturer of such devices. The name is pronounced in the English style as ''whacker,'' as opposed to the correct German ''vacker''. A rammer is colloquially referred to as "[[Irish people|Paddy]]'s Motorbike", due to the traditional resource of Irish construction labourers, and the way that the operator appears to "ride" the hammer holding the handles like a motorcycle.{{Citation needed|date=November 2009}}

<gallery mode="packed">
File:Plate compactor.jpg|A small plate compactor
File:Zageszczarka plytowa 2.JPG|A rammer compactor
File:2008-08-28 Wacker RT trench roller.jpg|A trench roller operated by remote control for operator safety
File:Seabees compactor roller.jpg|Large roller "sheepsfoot" compactor for use on soil
</gallery>

==Patents==
* ''{{US patent|2234098}}'' — Can crusher and baler — 1941
* ''{{US patent|7145450}}'' — Compactor Service & Monitoring System — 2006

==See also==
*[[Road roller]]
*[[Shredding (disambiguation)]]
*[[Soil compaction]]
*[[Tamp]]
*[[Waste compaction]]

==References==
{{reflist}}

==External links==
{{Commons category|Compactors|lcfirst=yes}}
{{Wiktionary}}
*[https://www.cdc.gov/niosh/docs/wp-solutions/2005-101/ Preventing Injuries When Working With Ride-On Roller/Compactors], a publication from the U.S. [[National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health]]


[[Category:Tools]]
[[Category:Engineering vehicles]]
[[Category:Waste collection]]